In addition to getting back one of the best players in baseball, Minnesota will also see a major lineup adjustment with the return of Royce Lewis.
Although Minnesota Twins fans haven’t seen Royce Lewis play baseball in more than a month, it appears that the wait may soon come to an end.

After hitting a home run in his season-opening at-bat, Lewis went down with a quad injury that has kept him out of the game since the third inning of Opening Day. Lewis was being heralded as a dark horse MVP candidate, but it was a cruel twist of fate that he ended up in the same injury grave as so many other Twins players.

It looks like he will return soon, even though a specific date is still uncertain. Lewis is recuperating on his own and ought to be cleared to play in St. Paul prior to his triumphant return to the Major League Baseball squad.

When he returns, the Twins will have more than just a talented young player. Rocco Baldelli will have a variety of alternatives when it comes to arranging the lineup on any given day after Lewis returns to the field.

1B: Alex Kirilloff and Carlos Santana
Edouard Julien, 2B
Royce Lewis at 3B; Carlos Correa at SS
RF: Kepler Max
Byron Buxton, CF
LF: Larnach Trevor
C: Jeffers Ryan
DH: Edouard Julien, Ryan Jeffers, and Alex Kirilloff
That’s a really strong lineup right there, and it would be even better if Santana could find the kind of impact that Minnesota expected him to have. The way it highlights the depth of talent on the bench makes it even better. If Jose Miranda stays up to help relieve Lewis at third base, Minnesota will have his bat in addition to Trevor Larnach and possibly Brooks Lee. However, someone will need to be sent down.

Once more, adjustments will be necessary to create space, but the main idea is that this is the ideal lineup with a ton of incredible possibilities.

However, it’s not the sole choice. Lewis on the field is ideal, but there are a few ways the Twins can put together a lineup if he returns and wants to play DH.

1B: Carlos Santana
Edouard Julien, 2B
Jose Miranda, 3B
Carlos Correa, SS
RF: Kepler Max
Byron Buxton, CF
LF: Kirilloff, Alex
C: Jeffers Ryan
Royce Lewis, DH
The Twins have some excellent bench options to choose from even in this situation, and that doesn’t even take into consideration any trade deadline moves the team might make.

With Brooks Lee and Emmanuel Rodriguez perhaps making their season debuts and Matt Wallner hopefully developing and contributing, it might not be necessary for Minnesota to make deals in order to add new talent to the squad.

The future appears bright for the Twins, despite the fact that their current circumstances may not be optimal and that everyone has been upset by their dependence on internal talent this winter. Undoubtedly, Lewis’s comeback strengthens the roster, but his alternatives provide the squad even more advantages.